"A...kito...?"
"Yeah, it's me. Are you okay to be awake already?"
I sat on the edge of the bed, still soaking wet. Riran was already sleeping in her wet clothes anyway, so it was probably too late to worry about that now.
Riran averted her eyes from me as if she couldn't face me. She looked just like a child afraid of being hated.
I took her hand and gently leaned in close to her.
"Don't make a face like that."
"But... because of my carelessness, the precious earrings you gave me..."
"No, I'm the one who lacked consideration. If it had been a necklace or a pendant, this wouldn't have happened."
"Don't say that...!"
Riran raised her voice and gripped the duvet tightly. Tears fell one after another, soaking into the bed and leaving stains. Her body trembled slightly as she spoke between hiccups.
"Hic... be, because... I was so happy... that you thought of me and gave me a present... hic. So, don't say... things like that... uuuuugh...!"
"...I'm sorry."
I gently stroked the head of the sobbing Riran. I had no idea she cherished them this much...
"Ah. N-no...! I'm not blaming you, Akito..."
"I know. I know, so please calm down."
Riran clung to my hand. Her eyes were a mix of despair and fear.
"Akito. I-I'm so, so sorry... I'm sorry. Even if I apologize, you might not forgive me... but I'm truly, truly sorry...!"
"Wait, wait, calm down."
"R-really, I'll apologize as many times as it takes, so p-please don't hate me...! Please, I'm begging you...!"
"Tei!!"
Take a brain chop! *Smack!*
"Honyu!? Wh-what was that for!"
Oh, the usual Riran is back. Rubbing her head where she'd been chopped, she directed a pouting face toward me.
Yes, that's it. That's the face that suits Riran best.
"Have you calmed down?"
"Well... yeah. A little..."
But she still seemed anxious, as she clung to my hand and wouldn't let go. Seeing her like this, she looked like a puppy desperately trying not to be abandoned.
"First, I want you to listen. I won't hate you over something like this. That's for certain. I swear it."
"...Really...?"
"Yeah, really."
"Absolute?"
"Absolute absolute. Really, really, truly."
I looked straight into Riran's eyes and declared it firmly. Gradually, the tension left Riran's body, and the light returned to her eyes.
Seriously, her eyes looked like she was on the verge of falling into darkness; it was genuinely scary. No, that's not it. Now that Riran is back to her senses, I have to tell her.
"Actually, I was looking for the earring until just now. Everyone helped me out too."
"Eh... i-is that so...?"
"Yeah. And about that... I'm sorry. I only found one of them."
I took out the small red anemone glasswork from the pocket of my swim trunks. The delicate craftwork sparkled as it reflected the evening sun.
Seeing it, Riran's eyes widened.
"Eh, but... you found it... from that sea...?"
"A dolphin found it for me."
"Eh!?"
"Ah, sorry, that was a lie."
"............"
"Ow, ow, ow! Sorry! I'll apologize, so don't pinch me in silence!"
Her puffed-up cheeks were cute, but she was pinching me with a strength that was no joke. And on my side, too!
"Well, it was swept away by the waves a bit. I went out to the open water to find it."
"The open water... in such a vast sea? That's reckless..."
"I worked hard."
"Is that something that can be solved just by working hard...!?"
"Now, now, isn't that fine?"
"I feel like it's not fine, though."
But really, there's no other way to put it. Other than... I was lucky?
I think it probably has something to do with the fact that Riran and I are connected by a Dark Scarlet red thread.
I just felt like it wasn't in the shallows but out in the open water. I just felt like it would be around there. I just felt like it might be caught in the rocky area. I just felt like I'd find it if I dove down and looked... ...Yeah, I was really lucky. That's all I can say.
When I handed over the anemone earring, Riran looked back and forth between the earring and me with a dazed expression.
"I really wanted to find the other one too, but it didn't seem to be within swimming distance... Neika said she'd take the boat out tomorrow, so we can go look for it then. Until then..."
"It's okay."
"...It's okay?"
"This is enough. Truly... thank you, Akito."
Riran held it tightly to her chest as if it were a precious treasure. Smiling happily yet somewhat sadly, Riran looked very fleeting, perhaps because of the sunset.
"I can't cause any more trouble for everyone. I'm truly happy just because you found this one. Thank you, Akito. I love you."
"U... o-oh..."
It's embarrassing when you say it so suddenly. Riran was smiling in the glow of the sunset. Unable to look at that smile directly, I averted my eyes.
"'I worked hard,' he says. Acting all cool."
"He was swimming around for about two hours looking for it. It's very Akki-like, though."
"Fufu. But it's a shame the other one wasn't found."
"Umū... But he searched this much and failed. Finding even one is a great success.”
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